A Tale of Friendship
by The Andromeda Rose
Summary: Shadow remembers Maria's last day, moments, & death...& remembers what a True Friend really is.


ENJOY!

Andromeda

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A Tale of Friendship

By: The Andromeda Rose

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I lost my one & only friend by a gun, a _weapon_. She was the only person who thought me as more than an "experiment" like many of the scientists I had an acquaintance with called me. She loved me & cared for me so much, that she gave her own life in order to save mine…that's the definition of a friend.

I also have a blue ally who constantly calls me "Faker" because I'm an experiment & rival his speeds with hover skates. Only one of his friend treated me similarly to the way Maria did: a pink female hedgehog like me. Only her I can respect as a _friend_. She overlooked my flaws & helped to remind me of the promise I made to Maria…

_Flashback:_

_Standing in front of a large observation window, Maria & I stood there, watching the planet they called "Earth" rotate slowly & quietly through Space._

"_Shadow, what do you think it's like on Earth?"_

"_The Professor said his life's work is dedicated to all of those who live down there. He once told that the reason for his existence was making people happy through the power of science."_

"_Shadow…"_

"_Maria…I just don't know anything anymore. I often wonder why I was created? What my purpose is for being here. Maybe if I go down there, I will find the answers. Maybe…Maria."_

"_Shadow?"_

"_I've seen photographs from down on the surface. But I wonder what it's like to be there. What is it like to see the sky above your head? I would like to visit there & find out."_

"_Me too."_

_End Flashback…_

She could have visited Earth if she hadn't been killed. The Professor said that I was the cure for her disease; I am the only one who has the special blood cells to help her immune system.

_Flashback:_

_Footsteps clanging against the hard metal floors. They weren't walking, they were __**running…**__running in pursuit of something…or someone._

_Two figures' shadows flew along the metal walls of hallways. One pulling the other behind him as they entered through sliding doors into a dark room. The one from the back pressed several combinations of codes into a console; the lights suddenly came on revealing a young blonde haired girl in a sky blue dress, the other, a black & red hedgehog._

"_Get in!" bade the girl named Maria pointing to an escape capsule standing before them._

_Hearing a noise as soon as he stepped in, the hedgehog, Shadow, whirred around to face the now closed opening, the only way out of this thing._

"_Maria!" shouted the black & red hedgehog as the doors they entered in whooshed open, revealing several G.U.N. Soldiers aiming their guns right at them._

"_Don't move or I'll shoot!" shouted the one closest to the girl._

_Shadow watched helplessly as the gun fired its bullet as his best friend, his only friend defiantly disobeyed the soldier's order. She collapsed._

_Presuming her dead & assuming there was no way out of the capsule for such a "dumb animal," they left the room unknowingly that Maria was waiting for them to do this._

_She struggled to stand up & make her way back to the console, "Please Shadow, I want you to promise me please…"_

"_No wait!"_

"_Whatever happens remember that I will always be your friend Shadow. We always talked about going to visit the planet one day. But it looks like it you will have to go there without me. I'm sure you'll be very happy there Shadow. I only wish that I could go along with you."_

"_No!"_

"_I beg of you, please do it for me…for a better future."_

"_Maria!"_

"_For all the people who live on that planet…give them a chance to be happy… Let them live for their dreams. Shadow, I know you can do it. That's the reason why you were brought into this world."_

_She gave him her very last smile before pulling the lever which would send him to Earth,_

"_Sayonara, Shadow the Hedgehog." & then, she collapsed._

_End Flashback…_

"_That is what a true friend is…"_ whispered the black hedgehog before disappearing mysteriously into the shadows.


End file.
